Everything Changes
by Chibi Pikapuff
Summary: An accident brings two former enemies together bringing with it feelings they never knew existed (Misty/James romance!)
1. Default Chapter

This is my latest addition to the Pokemon section of FanFiction.Net, a story of love, hope and adjustment named 'Everything Changes' I hope you all enjoy it, and if you read it please leave your comments and as this prologue ends on a cliff hanger it would also be nice if you had a guess as to who the person is in the last section – you will find out in chapter one the answer so you won't have to wait long!

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon or any of its characters, or is that obvious?

Prologue

The main headquarters of the famous organisation, Team Rocket, loomed above three human silhouettes; reaching so high it almost touched the pure white cotton clouds of a warm summers day. It was the image of a fairytale castle, where a prince might arrive to spend the rest of his life with the princess he loved. However, this 'castle' was different. This place had no happy ending, only the suffering and probable death of countless innocent Pokemon, who had been unfortunate enough to be captured by Giovanni's team of thieves. Giovanni was the brains behind Team Rocket, and ordered many experiments to be carried out, the 'guinea pigs' being the Pokemon they had stolen. Unbeknownst to Ash, Misty and Brock, they were about to proceed with their biggest experiment yet, one liable to be a disaster from the start.

There was a reason for the three trainers to be outside this place on a day normally spent relaxing. Several of the Pokemon inside belonged to them. It had happened only a day before, the group had been walking all day in the blazing heat, and had decided to take a break from their journey. While resting beside a cold and flowing river, they had been sprung by Jessie and James, two of Giovanni's followers. Usually they went away with their tails between their legs, literally for their Pokemon friend Meowth, but this time had been different. For once, they were organised and unbeatable, and Ash, Misty and Brock had been powerless to stop them, simply having to watch while their Pokeballs were placed into a huge sack, and Pikachu was held securely in a steel wire cage. The only Pokemon they had spared had been the tiny spike ball Pokemon, Togepi, who they discarded immediately, telling them she was too pathetic to be any use to Team Rocket. Leaving her safe at home, where there was no chance of the happy Pokemon being either captured or harmed, the three had begun the mission to get their best friends and companions back where they belonged. 

And that was why they were standing in the shadows, overlooking the monstrous eyesore that was Team Rocket's headquarters. It was going to be tough, none of them denied that horrible fact, they had no Pokemon with them and no idea where they were being held. But friends were forever, and after all, what sort of trainers would they be if they left their companions to be tortured by the organisation they had managed to avoid for two years? 

"I don't even know where to start," Ash commented in dismay, his eyes searching ahead. What it all came down to was that it was hopeless, and he was already giving up.

"I don't like that talk," Misty replied indignantly, turning towards her best friend. "Your Pokemon are trapped in there, being tortured even, and you're talking about giving up before we've even begun! Get a grip and get your brain in gear!"

"I don't suppose you've come up with any brilliant ideas," he said solemnly, although he was still pleased at having wound her up further, as he could see plainly from her face that she was about to explode.

"Why do I always have to do everything?!" she shouted, confirming Ash's previous prediction. 

"Fighting isn't going to do anyone any good, least of all our Pokemon," Brock interrupted, his thin eyes narrowing in annoyance. "And neither is standing here all day. If we want to get them back, then we have to get inside." His apparent authority took effect, as both Misty and Ash halted their glares at each other and turned their attention to their 'leader'.

"The doors are heavily guarded, and they're the only way in. What do you suggest?" All eyes turned to Brock, waiting for some kind of indication that he had an answer to a seemingly impossible question. However, Brock's narrow eyes showed no sign of doing so, and this caused optimism to fluctuate even further. An eerie silence befell the group, and the clouds in the sky seemed to become dull in protest. The silence only made the headquarters more and more intimidating, and all three felt a cold shiver run up their spines as they turned their attentions back to the building they were planning on entering. 

"Can we just get going?" Ash murmured. "I'd feel better knowing I was closer to Pikachu, even if we still didn't know how we were going to get him back." There was no other explanation needed. Brock and Misty, knowing that they would feel exactly the same, their Pokemon unintentionally drawing them towards danger, stared once more at the building they were heading for, and, remaining in silence, began to pick their feet across the dark, rocky and damp ground.

Getting closer to the headquarters did nothing to make it look any less intimidating, only made it look more dangerous. Standing immediately below the building, it appeared to tower up to the heavens, the top wasn't visible, only the clouds, which had become even duller and threatened to pour sparkling rain across the land. Ash, Misty and Brock cowered behind a wall that jutted out from the rest of the building, watching in deathly silence as two men with black Team Rocket uniforms paced backwards and forwards as if robotic in front of a huge metal door that marked the entrance to Giovanni's palace. 

"So, 'leader'," Misty whispered to Brock. "Where do we go from here?"

"Well we can't get in that way, that much is obvious," Brock replied, his eyes viewing Team Rocket's soldiers.

"I didn't need telling that!" Misty narrowed her eyes in annoyance, struggling to keep her voice low.

"I think our best option is to sneak around the back and see if we can find another way in."

"You really do have a knack for stating the obvious don't you?" Misty rolled her eyes, and Brock's face creased in impatience. 

"Do you really have to keep arguing?" Ash sighed. "I'm never going to get Pikachu back at this rate."

Five minutes later, the trio had managed to make their way around the hard stone walls of the headquarters, and had managed to pass unseen past three heavily guarded doors, which had led them to come to the conclusion that Giovanni put the least intelligent Team Rocket members in charge of security. 

The rear end of the building was much the same as the front, ivy ran from floor to ceiling, a lot of it brown and dead, giving it a haunted look, one which matched entirely the experiments that were carried out inside.  It was awe-inspiring despite it's appearance, and even though they hated the place and everything about it, even Ash, Brock and Misty couldn't help but stare up at it. 

"I never realised it was so big," Misty exclaimed. "I've only ever seen pictures of it."

"OK so it's big, but come on guys, we're not here to admire the place, we're here to get our Pokémon back." Ash stepped back from the huge building and glanced around desperately for some means of getting inside the building. Finding nothing, he turned to Brock, who was gazing at something.

"I wonder what's in that building over there?" he asked, pointing down a small grassy slope to a new looking brick building. It was extremely small compared to the giant that was the main headquarters, only about ten Metres Square and only one storey. There were dark windows all the way around the outside walls, and the metal bars covering them would make it all the more hard to enter.

"I don't know," Ash replied, following his friends gaze to the building. "But if there's any chance that our Pokémon are in there then we have to try."

"You're right," Misty agreed, immediately leaping down the small slope to the building, a look of enthusiasm crossing her face.  Ash and Brock soon followed, but as they approached the door their enthusiasm waned slightly as they viewed the huge padlock holding the door shut. 

"They sure don't want anyone getting in here," Ash commented, his tone of voice showing dismay. "I wonder if that's because our Pokemon are in there."

"Could be," Brock replied. "But there's only one way to find out."

After circling the entire building they came to the conclusion that the locked door was the only way of entering; heavy steel bars protected the windows, and there was no way that any of them could break them, not without the help of Pokemon.

"There's no use even trying," Ash said, sitting down on the grass beside the building. "We won't be able to get in."

"You're right," Misty agreed, seating herself next to him. "We'll just have to accept it, we'll never see our Pokemon again."

"What happened to the fighting talk I heard earlier?" Brock asked, still standing. "What happened to not giving up until we got our Pokemon back?"

"That was before I saw that great big padlock." Ash put his head down between his legs, attempting to hide the tears he was shedding to the world. 

"What kind of Pokemon trainers would we be if we gave up? If we stopped attempting to save them all because things got a little tough?" Brock knelt down beside the pair, and looked at them intently, almost begging them to reconsider. Brock had always taken a dim view to people who gave up without fighting, and therefore he had vowed to never give up even when things looked hopeless. Seeing his two best friends surrendering their Pokemon to Giovanni almost broke his heart, and he knew that he had to make them continue, because if he didn't, both him and them would regret it sometime in the future.

Ash was the first to raise his head, and although his cheeks were streaked with sparkling tears, his eyes glinted, as if they had just awakened from a deep sleep. He glanced over at Misty, who was visibly shaking, due to grief rather than the cold, and he smiled at her softly, placing one hand on her shoulder, and beckoning for her to look over at him. Eventually, her shaking subsided slightly and she turned to face her friend, who nodded his head and smiled reassuringly, As she noticed the new hope in his eyes, she echoed his nod, and smiled back at him.

"There, see," Brock smiled. "Now come on, lets get that padlock open. I heard Giovanni doesn't like spending his cash, so lets hope his padlocks are cheap and easy to break." He helped Misty to her feet, pulling her up by her arms, and she in turn pulled Ash to his feet. 

By the time they joined him, Brock was already closely examining the lock, attempting to figure out the best way of getting it open. Peering into the huge keyhole in the centre, a smile appeared on his tanned face.

"I was right," he announced triumphantly. "It seems that in trying to save money, Giovanni has ordered his doors to be locked by padlocks capable of being opened with any key."

"Really?!" Misty replied, surprised. "I wouldn't have thought Giovanni was that stupid."

"Just because he's a leader doesn't mean he's intelligent. He uses force to get people to follow him, not his brains." Brock fished in his pocket for a few moments, before eventually revealing a shiny silver key in his hand. "I took it upon me to get us a place at a guesthouse in the city before we came, this is the key. It should do the trick." Nervously, he inserted the key into the centre of the padlock, and twisted it in a clockwise direction, his shaking hands struggling to keep a grip on the lock.

CLICK.

As the lock came open, it fell to the floor with a loud clatter, which seemed to echo all around the building. The trio froze, certain that one of the guards must have heard, and they only dared move once they heard silence. They wasted no time in pulling the heavy door open, and once they were all inside, they shut it behind them, afraid that one of Giovanni's guards might walk past and notice. Inside the room was dark; the blinds at the window were thick, not allowing much light to penetrate. The light that did manage to get through the sides was dull, showing that the weather had worsened since they had arrived. As the trios eyes grew accustomed to the dimness, they saw that the walls of the room they were in were covered from floor to ceiling with wire cages, and that in some of them, Pokemon could be seen clutching the fronts as if pleading to be let out.

"Pikachu!" Ash shouted, stepping further into the room. "Are you in here?"

"Pika!" the reply came from the shadows in one corner of the room. Ash's heart leapt as he heard the sound of his companion, the voice he had been wishing to hear since they had parted. He wasted no time in racing across the room and gazing into the cage. Inside, Pikachu sat, a huge grin on his face. Pulling hard on the cage door, it finally gave way, causing him to fly backwards, with the door still in his hands, and land with a crash to the floor. 

"Ash!" Misty shouted, running up to him and crouching down next to him. "Are you OK?"

"Yeah," Ash replied, although he didn't sound too sure, and as he picked himself up from the floor it was obvious the bang on the head had made him dizzy. Pikachu leapt out of the cage and jumped into his arms, almost knocking him over a second time. Ash held his companion close to his chest, and tears came to his eyes as he realised he had got his friend back. 

"Psyduck! Goldeen! Staryu! Poliwhirl!" Misty exclaimed, turning her attention to a large cage in the corner containing a pool of water about half a metre deep and a metre square. Psyduck was seated on a rock in the centre of the pool, looking his usual confused self, and scared to move. The other three were swimming in circles in the cramped conditions, sad distant looks on their faces. As they heard Misty's voice, Psyduck promptly fell off the rock and into the water where Goldeen, Poliwhirl and Staryu struggled to hold him out of the water. Misty took four Pokeballs from her belt and pointed them one by one to the cage, where, on her command, the Pokemon retreated into them.

Brock was in another corner of the room, peering into cage by cage, until he finally stopped in front of one and grinned.

"Golbat!" he shouted, easily pulling the door off the cage – another one of Giovanni's money savers. Echoing Misty's previous actions, he retreated his Pokemon into the ball, and moving on from cage to cage, did the same with Onix, Geodude and Vulpix.

Ash had managed to tear himself away from his embrace with Pikachu, and had discovered Cyndaquil, Chikorita and Totodile squeezed into one tiny cage next to Pikachu. They were irritable and tired from lack of sleep, and it appeared as though they had been fighting, as all three of them were bruised and scratched.

"What have you been doing?" Ash asked, looking down at them. "You haven't been fighting have you?" The three gazed down at the ground, ashamed, confirming what Ash had suspected. "Never mind," he sympathised. "I'm just glad you're safe." He smiled, wiping another tear from his cheek, these tears, unlike the ones he had shed earlier, were caused by happiness, something which he had thought he'd never have again. 

It was ten minutes later when all the Pokemon were safely back in their Pokeballs, apart from Pikachu who instead seated on his trainers right shoulder. It seemed like an eternity since they had arrived at the headquarters earlier that day, and the room was now darker than ever, the sky outside showing the first signs that dusk was coming. The weather had also taken a turn for the worse, half an hour earlier the heavens had opened and rain had begun to fall in torrents, clearly audible on the windows of the building. 

"Just our luck," Misty commented, tapping her foot on the ground in frustration. "And it was such a nice day as well."

"We'll take the day off tomorrow, we deserve it after our trek today," Brock replied.

"I'll hold you to that," Misty smiled at him.

As Brock lifted the heavy latch on the door and pulled it open, a huge gust of wind entered the building, almost blowing him off his feet and circling the building before exiting again. He struggled to hold the door open while Ash and Misty went out of it, and when he was sure they were out, he let go and raced out himself, watching the door crash shut behind him. 

They were soaking wet immediately on entering the outside world. Rain dripped from their hair and down their clothes, and they shivered from the cold as Brock re-attached the padlock on the door in order to avoid immediate suspicion.

"Can you hear that?" Ash asked, becoming silent and listening intently. From the direction of the main building of the headquarters a quiet crashing sound could be heard, but even as they listened it began to get louder. It was followed by an alarm bell, a shrill sound that echoed inside the building before escaping out of the windows and to the trio's ears. 

"Do you think they've realised we're here?" Misty asked, a panicked expression crossing her face as her eyes darted from side to side, expecting to see guards appearing at any minute.

"If they have then we'd better get out of here quickly," Brock replied.

Misty needed no more encouragement. Without telling the others she was going, she broke into a run, making her way towards the huge entrance to the headquarters. When Brock and Ash realised she had gone, they began to follow, easily catching up to the girl, who was struggling to run against the force of the wind blowing the other way. The alarm was getting louder and louder as they navigated the side of the building, but the biggest shock was about to come.

They were about half way past the building, Brock in front with Ash and Misty lagging behind, already showing signs of exhaustion, when the crashing they had heard earlier started up again. This time, however, it was different. This time, the sky was suddenly alight with a glowing red, and as the three of them dived as far away from the building as they could, the whole building exploded, a giant fireball rising from within and throwing glass and bricks to the ground like a rainstorm. It was followed by dust, rising from the ground like it had risen from the dead, and settling a few metres above the ground, thick and choking. The noise died down slightly. All that could be heard was the roaring of the flames of hundreds of fires littered around the remains of the headquarters, and the last pieces of brick hitting the ground with a loud thud.

On the ground beside a smaller fire lay two human figures, unconscious with blood on the sides of their heads, slowly dripping to the ground. Protruding from a pile of bricks that had fallen just seconds earlier, was a bright yellow tail, like a stroke of lightning, bent slightly and lying of the ground, the only part of the electric Pokemon visible. The other human, however, was nowhere in sight.

oo00O00oo

White… so much white. That was the first thought that entered the drowsy figures head as they opened their eyes to the world for the first time in two days. The second thought was confusion. Was this heaven? Were they dead? They remembered the horror of the explosion that had devastated Team Rocket's Headquarters, and remembered flying through the air due to the force of the blast. They didn't feel dead, but then again what did it feel like to be dead? The eyes opened a second time, and this time the person saw a figure overlooking the bed. An angel? Then they realised, they were in a hospital and the person looking at them was a concerned nurse. They yawned, and realised their head was in pain, and closed their eyes to try and blank it out. Not succeeding, they opened their eyes again.

"Where… where am I?" The fact was, the person knew where they were, and so had no idea why they had said it. Maybe they needed some kind of reassurance that they weren't dead.

"You're in the Viridian City Hospital," the nurse replied. 

That was all the reassurance they needed, and a smile came to their face as they realised they were alright, and that apart from the pain in the head there seemed to be little else wrong. Or so they thought. As they did a mental check in their head to ensure that they were fine, they suddenly realised something.

"Why… why can't I feel my legs?" they asked with a quivering voice.


	2. Chapter One

1.1.1 Here is chapter two of 'Everything Changes' I apologise once again for the length of the prologue, I really should have split it into two parts but I couldn't find a place to split it evenly. Anyway, hope you enjoy this chapter ^_^  
  
1.1.2  
  
1.1.3 SIX MONTHS LATER  
  
"That's another hard days work finished," James sighed loudly with relief as he poured a full bucket of murky soapy water down the nearest drain. He was covered in water from head to foot, his overall dripping onto the ground and his hair flat against his face. It was just as well the sun was out, or he would have been freezing cold as well.  
  
"You still haven't told us why you're standing here day after day cleaning cars instead of helping us steal Pokemon." Jessie leaned against the sparkling bonnet of a brand new scarlet red sports car, sliding her dark sunglasses down her nose in order to see her friend clearly. The car was her newest purchase, one she had brought immediately after passing her driving test – which had incidentally taken her six tries because she kept flirting with the instructors.  
  
"I only need to work for one more day then I'll have enough money for what I want to buy," he grinned, shaking his wet indigo hair in her direction, much to her disgust.  
  
"Which is?" Jessie prompted.  
  
"It's best not to ask," he blushed, turning away from her gaze.  
  
"Well I'm sorry for wondering," she replied indignantly. "I'm just interested in why you're leaving all the hard work to me!"  
  
"You haven't tasted hard work until you do this job! I'm exhausted!"  
  
"You're exhausted?!" Jessie yelled. "I spent three hours trailing a trainer this morning and ended up getting into a fight with him!"  
  
"Isn't that the point?" James grinned.  
  
"I think you misunderstood me," she remarked. "I got into a fight with him."  
  
"Ah, right, that explains why your hair is so out of place, I guess you didn't have time to brush it,"  
  
"I've just got back from the hairdressers!" Jessie frowned, running her fingers through her hair.  
  
"Then you should get a refund," he smiled cheekily, but soon wished he hadn't when Jessie's fist made contact with the side of his head. The force was so great that he toppled backwards and landed promptly in the bucket he had recently poured water out of.  
  
"Hey!" he exclaimed. "That was unfair, I didn't have time to dodge out of the way!"  
  
"You weren't supposed to," Jessie muttered, walking round her car to the driver's side and jumping in without bothering to open the door. Slouched on the passenger seat was a drowsy looking Meowth, wearing dark sunglasses almost identical to Jessie's, and with a pair of headphones over his ears, from which heavy beats could be heard.  
  
"Since when have you been so… cool?" James asked, struggling to pick himself out of the bucket and glaring at the Pokemon.  
  
"Since Jessie here told me that unless I became 'cool' I wouldn't be allowed to ride in her car," he grinned, mimicking Jessie's earlier move and slipping his glasses down his nose.  
  
"So…" James said. "Am I cool enough to ride in your car?"  
  
"In that state?!" she shrieked. "You'd completely ruin the seat cushions!"  
  
"I guess I'm walking then," he replied solemnly.  
  
"Too right you are, now get out of my way. We'll see you back at the guesthouse." James literally had to leap out of the way to avoid being run over by the car, which sped out of the car park with such speed that its wheels screeched on the warm tarmac. In a flash, it was gone, and James sighed and looked at the space where the car had been a few moments ago in annoyance. It was beginning to get colder, and he had to walk three miles before he could have a warm shower. Live sucked, he decided, as he heaved his rucksack onto his shoulders and began to leave the car park, his wet boots squelching every step he took, and leaving watery footsteps behind which marked his every move.  
  
oo00O00oo  
  
Ash's alarm clock showed ten O Clock in the morning as the ringing from it caused him to open his eyes wide and sit bolt upright. He wasn't used to being woken up, it just seemed easier to remain asleep most of the time. The clock that stared him in the face was small, rectangle and black, unlike the one he used to have which was shaped like a Pokeball. That was the case with everything in his room; all his Pokemon merchandise had been stacked away in cupboards where they couldn't be seen. As his eyes came into focus he noticed a huge sky blue envelope on his bedside cabinet. He leaned over and took it in his hand, and ripped the top open, pulling out a card.  
  
"Happy Birthday," he murmured unenthusiastically, opening the card up to reveal what was inside. "Lots of love, Mum." As he read what was written in the card, tears came to his eyes. He hated this day. Glancing over at a shelf on the opposite wall, he focussed on a photograph in a bright orange frame. It was a picture taken on his birthday three years ago, just before he'd left to begin his Pokemon Journey. He was the main focus in the picture, but sitting beside him on the ground, looking slightly reluctant to be there, was his companion Pikachu. Three years ago he had met his Pokemon for the first time, and sixth months ago he had lost that friend in an explosion. He felt the tears in his eyes begin to roll slowly down his cheeks and didn't try to stop them. Things would never be the same again, and it was all thanks to Team Rocket.  
  
He eventually managed to find the effort to pull himself out of bed, stretching as he stood up and finally wiped his tear-streaked cheeks in order to hide the fact that he had been crying to his mother. As he opened the door he took one last look at the picture of himself, the smiling excited look on his face, as he knew he was about to embark on the adventure of his life. That look was a far cry from the one that he saw as he looked in the mirror hung on the inside of his door. His smile was gone, his eyes weary, his complexion pale. It had been six months and he still hadn't forgotten the pain the explosion had caused, both physically and mentally, not just for him, but for his two best friends as well, the ones he had hardly seen since.  
  
"Ash!" his mum shouted from downstairs. "Is that you?"  
  
"Yeah," he said bluntly, exiting his room and closing the door behind him.  
  
"Come down stairs will you? There's someone here to see you."  
  
Ash was surprised, he hadn't had any visitors in three months, and he wondered who it was. He assumed it would be one of his relatives, come to wish him a happy birthday. He didn't, however, agree that it was happy, rather the opposite. This, he decided, was the worst day of the year. As he wandered down the stairs as slowly as possible, he heard voices coming from the direction of the dining room of the house. One of them was his mother, bright and cheery as usual, and the other was one he thought he recognised but couldn't be sure who it was. Stopping half way down the stairs he pondered on where he had heard the voice before. It took him only three seconds to realise who the voice was coming from, and he cursed himself for not realising sooner.  
  
"Brock!" he yelled, racing down the remaining stairs and into the dining room. As he entered, his mother, who was standing nearby, promptly left, sensing that the pair might want to be alone.  
  
"Hi Ash," he replied, smiling. Brock was sitting at the huge oak table that dominated the room, squeezed in a chair against the wall, just like everyone did when they sat there. On the table in front of him was a huge pile of brightly wrapped presents, and an equally huge pile of envelopes. Set aside slightly from the rest, and near to Brock than the others, was a largish box wrapped in bright yellow paper, with a yellow bow sitting proudly on the top.  
  
"So… what are you doing here?" Ash stammered, struggling to think of anything to say to the friend he hadn't seen in so long.  
  
"I came to give you this." He pushed the large present across the table to where Ash had sat down. "Your mum said it was OK for you to open this one first.  
  
"I don't know what to say… thanks Brock," he smiled genuinely for the first time that day, and began to rip the paper off the box. Once all the wrapping paper had been removed, all that remained was an odd looking wooden box. Ash hesitated.  
  
"Go on," Brock urged. "Open it."  
  
Ash did as he was told right away and heaved the heavy lid from the box. As soon as the lid was removed the content was revealed. From the box a surge of lightning engulfed the room. When it finally subsided a couple of seconds later a dazed looking Ash peered inside the box. Sitting in the centre, an annoyed look on its face was a small Pichu.  
  
"You brought this… for me?"  
  
"I don't see anyone else here," Brock grinned. "I found it on the road a month ago, it was badly injured but I managed to nurse it back to health. I decided it was time for you to you get another Pokemon and I thought Pichu was the perfect choice after…" he trailed off, realising he ought not continue.  
  
"It's OK you know," Ash replied. "You can say it. The one thing that really annoys me is people pretending he never existed."  
  
"Oh… I'm… I'm sorry," Brock stuttered.  
  
"Don't worry about it, everyone does it until I tell them otherwise."  
  
"Pi!" Pichu leapt out of the box and landed on the table in front of Ash. It appeared to be annoyed at being left out of the conversation, but luckily had managed to refrain from shocking them with another electric attack.  
  
"Hi Pichu," Ash smiled genuinely at the tiny creature. "I guess you're my new Pokemon."  
  
"Pichu!" it replied enthusiastically. Ash felt a happy feeling within his soul. A feeling that he hadn't felt since the explosion. This gift from his best friend, to him, represented the beginning of a new life, and he decided at that moment that from now on things were going to change. For months he had avoided everything to do with Pokemon, even sending his other old friends back to Professor Oak to look after, and he realised now that he had been selfish to do so.  
  
"What are you thinking?" Brock asked, staring at him intently.  
  
"I'm thinking that perhaps it's time to get my old friends back from Professor Oak."  
  
"You mean… you're going to continue your Pokemon journey?" Brock became excited at the prospect of once again travelling with Ash.  
  
"Eventually, yeah," he replied, stroking his new Pichu softly on the head. "I'll have to get to know my Pokemon again, and train them up slightly first."  
  
"That shouldn't take you too long. After all, you're a natural."  
  
"Thanks," Ash grinned. "It'll be weird though, carrying on without Misty."  
  
"How is she?" Brock asked solemnly. "Have you seen her recently?"  
  
"Not for months. I've travelled over to Cerulean a few times but her sisters wouldn't let me in. I got the feeling Misty had told them not to."  
  
"I wish she would," Brock stared at the table. "If she's not letting us in then she's most likely not letting anyone in. It can't be good for her sitting in her room day after day staring out of the window." Brock had been to visit her once while she was still in hospital. He wished Ash could have been there with him but he was still recovering himself, and grieving over Pikachu, so he had ended up going alone. Misty had been sat upright in an uncomfortable looking bed in a ward with at least ten other people. Her cubicle had been the only one with its curtains closed permanently. She hadn't even looked up when he had entered, just stared straight ahead at the brightly coloured curtain behind him. He had spoken to her but she hadn't spoken back, he had felt tears in his eyes and felt them roll down his cheeks but she hadn't reacted. She had been like a ghost; no matter how hard he had tried to reach out to her he had slipped right through her, and eventually he had given up and wandered out of the cubicle. He doubted if she had even noticed.  
  
"Maybe we should take another trip over there?" Ash suggested. "Give it one last try."  
  
"That sounds like a good idea," Brock agreed. "I promised Nurse Joy I'd go and visit her there anyway, so I could do both in one trip."  
  
"Then it's agreed. Tomorrow we'll set out to Cerulean City to see Misty, and if she won't see us then we'll give up and get on with our lives. I know she's our best friend, but if she doesn't want to see us, and if it upsets her to watch us walking down the path to her house, then we have to do what is best for her and leave her alone, however much she might need us…" 


	3. Chapter Two

Hope you enjoy chapter two, sorry it's taken me a while to write it, but as you can see, I've been writing MANY other stories at the same time so updates don't come as frequently as I would like them to. Thanks for the reviews, Greeneyeshipping is what the Misty/James relationship is called, although I have heard it being called Alternashipping on some sites as well. 

Chapter Two 

James stared past his reflection in the shop window as shoppers passed him by, occasionally crashing into him by accident and apologising profusely until they realised that they weren't getting an answer. James, it was obvious, was preoccupied.  

The name of the shop was "Cycle on By", and the object he was staring at so intently was a brand new mountain bike, sky blue in colour, and with wheel plates emblazoned with a bright picture of the water Pokemon, Staryu. He had had his eye on it since him and Jessie had arrived at Goldenrod City, and he had decided there and then to remain in the city until he had enough money to buy it. 

However, it wasn't for himself that he was doing so much hard work. The bike was to be given as a gift, to the girl he had loved since the first time had met but had never been able to tell, Misty. Every time he glanced at the bike he saw her face in his mind as he presented it to her, one of joy, of happiness, of love. 

Without warning his fist suddenly made contact with the solid glass window. He was kidding himself, he realised that. Misty didn't love him. She hated him. Why would she love him? All he had ever done was chase her trying to steal her Pokemon, and it was all for the sake of hiding his true feelings from her. He had never thought that one day he would be fed up of hiding it. That was his problem, he never did think until it was too late. But then he remembered another trait of his character, he never gave up, and he wasn't about to start now. After another day at work he would have enough money to buy the bike of Misty's dreams, he just hoped the bike wasn't the only think she appreciated.

He was interrupted from his thoughts by someone tapping him on the shoulder and repeating the same words over again… "Earth to James, Earth to James." James spun round and immediately felt his cheeks redden as he stared into the face of Jessie.

"Not really your style is it?" she asked, pointing at the bike he had his eye on. "And what's this? You're blushing… now which pretty girl would you be thinking of buying that for?" Jessie fluttered her eyelashes, as she looked him straight in the eye, causing him to blush even more.

"I… I… can't say," James replied, edging away from her and crashing into the window behind him.

"Oh come on James," she laughed. "It's not as if I don't know already!"

"You know?!" James was shocked. "But… how?"

"I'm a woman, I know everything," she replied, winking.

"So… do you think she likes me too?" he asked, still slightly taken aback.

"I know she does." Before James had time to complain, her lips met his, and as he struggled to remove himself from her grip, she kissed him softly, allowing herself to close her eyes. It took James about ten seconds to pull himself away, and even then the only way he was able to do so was by lowering himself to the ground and slipping out of her way. As he stood up his eyes were wide and confused, and painted diagonally across his lips was a representation of the shape of Jessie's lips, in a deep scarlet colour.

"I don't see why you're so confused," Jessie remarked, slightly annoyed. "After all if we're going to be together then you have to expect a kiss every now and again."

"Oh…" James trailed off, realising what had happened. "You thought I meant you?"

"Well who else would you mean?" Jessie replied, as confused as James was earlier.

"I'm… sorry… Jess," he stammered. "If I'd known how you felt about me I'd have kept my feelings better hidden to make sure you didn't find out."

"What… feelings?" Jessie looked at him dubiously.

"I'm in love with Misty," he admitted eventually, looking totally ashamed.

"That red haired freak?!" she exclaimed. "How the hell did you manage to fall in love with her?!"

"Well maybe because she doesn't bully me all the time, put me down over and over again, beat me up and act like she's superior to me when in reality she isn't!" he shouted, beginning to get angry.

"And maybe I don't love you at all!" Jessie retaliated. "I mean why would I want to love someone who's so much lower in the evolutionary chain than me?!"

"Hey, could you keep the noise down out here please?" the owner of the bicycle shop wandered out of the entrance and stood with his arms crossed staring at the pair.

"You're welcome to your peace," Jessie hissed. "I'm leaving!" As she looked in James direction one last time, he noticed tears beginning to trickle down her cheeks, and as she ran away from the shop he felt guilty for upsetting her.

"Jessie!" he shouted after. "Come back!" he shouted again. "I'm sorry…" he said quietly as if to himself as he realised she wasn't coming back. Staring at the busy street she had run down, he began to race after her.

"Reserve that bike for me would you?" he shouted back to the shopkeeper as he merged into the crowds and disappeared.

oo00O00oo

_"Hi Misty," Brock said sympathetically as he pulled back the curtain that sheltered her from the world and entered the cubicle, closing it quietly behind him. It was visiting time already? Misty wondered. She had no recollection of what time it was; she didn't even know whether it was day or night. Brock sat down on a small wicker chair beside the bed and looked at her, unsure of what to say. Misty wanted to put him out of his misery by beginning the conversation but no matter how heard she tried she couldn't get the words she wanted to say out of her mouth. She stared past him, letting her eyes relax, staring at nothing in particular, to attempt to block out the image of Brock smiling at her, a sickly sympathetic look on his face. She couldn't bare it. However much she wanted to be with her friends, talk to them, be back on the road, she couldn't have it all, and if she couldn't have it all then part of it wasn't enough, because all it served to do was remind her of what she couldn't have. _

_"I'd better go now… The guesthouse closes soon…" Brock trailed off, and Misty could tell he was on the verge of tears. She wished she could stop them flowing, but she knew it was impossible. As Brock left the room, a distant look on his face, she wished she could get out of bed and run after him, but that was just as impossible. She closed her eyes to the world, and for a moment wished they would never open again._

"Toci!" Misty emerged from her thoughts as her Pokemon Togepi raced through the door as fast as her little legs could carry her, and leapt clumsily onto a plastic chair in the corner of the room. Misty turned away from the window and wheeled her chair a hundred and eighty degrees to face her.

"Hi Togepi," she said softly to the Pokemon, managing a weak smile. "How are you today?"

"Toci Toci," she replied enthusiastically.

"Thought so… you always are. Any chance of rubbing some of that happiness off on me?"

"Toci… pwi" Togepi said sympathetically, turning her head to one side.

"I'm sorry Togepi," she sighed. "I know I haven't been much of a trainer recently, but I will be eventually, I promise."

"Toci," Togepi smiled warmly, and with one final leap jumped onto her trainer's lap and snuggled up to her. Misty turned her attention back to the window, and stared through the glass and ahead to where the Cerulean City Gym stood. She remembered visiting every day when she was young, and learning how to train her favourite water Pokemon. It seemed so long ago now, and it seemed like she had done so much since. Of course, she had. She had become a gym leader, and then embarked on the journey of a lifetime, met people she'd never forgotten and experiences she'd learned a lot from. Now she was stuck in a cramped and uncomfortable wheelchair depending on other people to push her around. How quickly things changed. 

She began to think about Ash. She had loved him once, a long time ago. At first she had hated him, but she soon realised that hating him was a way of putting her real feelings out of her head, in order to keep herself from going mad. She had never told him how she felt, Ash was always too busy finding the next gym, the next trainer, the next Pokemon, and he hardly noticed her. Most of the time it was as if she was an inconvenience, a whingeing pain in the neck that got in his way, at least that's how she felt most of the time. Now she didn't know how she felt, part of her still loved him and wanted to give him a hug and tell him everything, but another part, the one which dominated her thoughts, hated him for reminding her about what life had been like before the explosion. Of course, that wasn't his fault, but she couldn't help how she felt.

She watched as a tear slipped down her cheek and landed on Togepi's head. She hadn't realised she was crying until then. She wiped more tears from her face, frustrated with herself for letting herself get upset. She hated herself for feeling how she did, but she couldn't see any way to change it. Her sisters had given up on her a long time ago, and she was on the verge of doing the same. 

She stifled a yawn and as she did so she realised she hadn't slept in days, or maybe weeks, she had lost track of time. Stretching her arms above her head and yawning once more, she turned to her bed and grabbed hold of the wheelchairs arms in order to pull herself out. She got halfway out of the chair, but as she reached for the bed she realised her arms were giving way. Screeching as she fell to the ground, she let go of Togepi who flew across the room and landed with a crash on the floor. She responded by bursting into loud tears, and listening to the Pokemon's weeping, Misty broke down crying, and the two lay there, shedding tears that could fill a river.

"I'm pathetic," Misty whispered as she hit the ground with her fist in frustration.

oo00O00oo

"Jessie?" James asked as he entered the room in the guesthouse they were sharing. "Are you here?" He had felt bad since they had argued, and, not finding her anywhere else, assumed she had returned here.  But as he walked in he could only see Meowth who was lying flat on his back on one of the beds. 

"She's come and gone," Meowth looked up. "She's pretty upset, has you two been arguin' again?"

"Yeah, and it's all my fault." James sat on the bed opposite the Pokemon, who sat up and looked at him interest.

"What did ya do this time?" Meowth rolled his eyes, after all, it wasn't the first time James had messed things up.

"I fell in love," he admitted.

"With Jessie?"

"No."

"And that's da problem?" Meowth pulled himself up from his slumped condition and leaned forwards, looking his depressed friend in the eyes.

"Got it in one," James sighed.

"If ya don't mind me askin'… who's da lucky girl?" Meowth stood up and wandered across the bed towards James.

"It's Misty," James replied quietly, putting his head down.

"That girl who hangs around with da twerp?" Meowth asked, intrigued. "But we ain't seen dem for months."

"If I'd only loved her for a few months then maybe it'd be easier." James put his hands behind his head and slumped down on his back, sighing loudly and staring dreamily at the ceiling. "Why did I have to be so stupid as to fall in love with her," he cursed himself, his dreamy expression converting immediately into frustration.

"Ya can't choose who ya fall in love with," Meowth replied sympathetically. "I knows all about that."

"Yeah but Misty of all people!" he sat up swiftly, putting his head down. As he ran his fingers through his hair, the door of the room slammed and Jessie entered the room, her eyes read and her cheeks tear-stricken. As she noticed James sitting looking at her she turned back to the door.

"Jessie," he said promptly, getting to his feet and wandering across to her. "I'm sorry."

"What do you have to be sorry about?" she replied slightly bitterly, turning back to him. "It's not your fault you don't love me."

"I mean, for what I said, I shouldn't have." James put his head down in shame, and to avoid looking Jessie in the eye. "But you were wrong about me not loving you. You're the best friend I've ever had, and I love you so much, just not in the same way as I love Misty. You understand… don't you?"

"I guess I don't have much choice," she replied, a weak smile appearing on her face. "I know you never did have good taste, and from what I can see you still don't, but it's your choice and if you want to be with her, then you go get her."

"Thanks Jessie," he grinned. "I will."

His next thought was that he ought to get his hands on that bike before someone stole it from in front of him, do he delved in a rucksack beside his bed for a number of notes and coins, and then placed them carefully in the pockets of his trousers before dashing out of the room without another word to anyone.

" I still can't understand what he sees in that twerp," Jessie muttered as she watched the door slam shut behind her, just as her hopes of her and James being together closed up inside of her.


End file.
